WASHINGTON (AP) — Amid rancorous debate over other weighty issues Thursday on Capitol Hill, lawmakers wondered aloud whether driving cars after smoking marijuana is dangerous. Among the unanswered questions: Would drivers who are “high” travel too fast or too slow for safety?
Rep. John Mica, a Florida Republican who convened the Transportation subcommittee hearing, said he’s concerned that growing numbers of drivers on U.S. roadways are increasingly impaired with a mix of drugs and alcohol. But with no test to determine if a driver is high on THC, the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, it’s nearly impossible to gauge the danger. Instead, he said, it’s only after a fatal crash that investigators can determine if a driver has measurable levels of THC in his bloodstream.
